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HeadlinesNovember 21, 2017

Media Options

Charlie Rose Show Pulled from Air After 8 Women Accuse Him of Sexual Harassment

Nov 21, 2017

CBS News has suspended Charlie Rose, and PBS and Bloomberg TV have stopped airing “The Charlie Rose Show,” after eight women accused the famous TV broadcaster of sexual harassment, including groping them, making lewd phone calls and walking around naked or in an untethered bathrobe.

One former intern for Charlie Rose named Reah Bravo told The Washington Post that Rose repeatedly walked around naked in front of her and repeatedly groped her, including one time when he “grabbed me by my hair, holding a fist of it at the base of my scalp.” Another time, she says, they were traveling on a small private plane when he got out of his seat and lay on top of her, pressing his body into hers. Other women accused Rose of forcefully touching or trying to touch them without their consent. One woman describes being in the midst of a job hiring process with Rose, having already been told salary and job title, when he took her out to his Bellport, Long Island, estate. After sitting by the pool late at night with her, he returned naked in an open bathrobe and proceeded to force his hands down her pants.

According to the Post, a number of people at “The Charlie Rose Show” knew about Rose’s alleged sexual harassment, including the longtime producer Yvette Vega. The Post spoke to over 20 people for the article, and at least a dozen more women have come forward to the Post since the article was published yesterday. In response to the investigation, Charlie Rose said, “I deeply apologize for my inappropriate behavior.” This is Gayle King, co-anchor of ”CBS This Morning.”

Gayle King: “I’m really struggling, because how do you—what do you say when someone that you deeply care about has done something that is so horrible? How do you wrap your brain around that? I’m really grappling with that. That said, Charlie does not get a pass here. He doesn’t get a pass from anyone in this room. We are all deeply affected.”

The shocking Washington Post investigation is the latest of a series of sexual harassment revelations to upend the media, journalism and political worlds in the wake of the fall of Harvey Weinstein, who is now being criminally investigated, after dozens of women came forward to accuse him of rape, assault and sexual harassment.

And in breaking news, Michigan Rep. John Conyers reportedly settled a sexual harassment complaint in 2015, paying out $27,000 to a woman who alleged she was fired from his Washington staff because she rejected his sexual advances. Rep. Conyers is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee.

Hundreds of farmworkers and their supporters rallied Monday night outside the Manhattan offices of Wendy’s board chairman Nelson Peltz to protest sexual harassment, assault and violence in the tomato fields. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers are demanding Wendy’s sign on to the “Fair Food Program,” aimed at protecting farmworkers’ rights, including the right to work without sexual harassment and assault, which has been pervasive in the agricultural industry. This is farmworker Lupe Gonzalo.

Lupe Gonzalo: We’re demanding that Wendy’s sign an agreement to guarantee human rights for farmworkers, and, in particular, the rights of women working in the fields. For the first time in history, we, as farmworker women, are living a new day: an opportunity to work in the fields free from sexual harassment. But Wendy’s, instead of joining the Fair Food Program to eliminate sexual harassment and violence against women in the fields, has decided to move its tomato purchases to Mexico, where this violence is endemic.”

The White House appears to be continuing to endorse Alabama Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore, despite the fact that nine women have accused Moore of sexually harassing or assaulting them when they were teenagers. The New Yorker reports Moore was banned from a local mall and a YMCA in Alabama because he repeatedly badgered teenage girls, in some cases soliciting sex from young girls. This is senior White House aide Kellyanne Conway bashing Moore’s opponent, Doug Jones, in an interview with Fox News.

In its latest immigration crackdown, the Trump administration has announced it will revoke a special immigration program for nearly 60,000 Haitians, including many who came to the United States after the devastating 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The Trump administration now says their temporary protected status, or TPS, will end in July 2019. This is Marleine Bastien, executive director of Haitian Women of Miami, speaking on Democracy Now! earlier this year.

Marleine Bastien: “It is in the best interest, national interest of the U.S., for the 50,000-plus Haitians to remain here, continue to contribute, socially, financially and otherwise, and then keep these remittances flowing, so that people will not risk their lives to come here as a result of these, you know, waves of deportation.”

Meanwhile, a federal judge in California has blocked President Trump’s executive order to withhold funding from so-called sanctuary cities. District Judge William Orrick ordered the injunction after ruling it is unconstitutional for the Trump administration to force cities to mobilize local police to cooperate with the federal government’s mass deportation plans.

Trump Admin Asks Supreme Court to Allow Travel Ban to Take Effect

Nov 21, 2017

In more immigration news, the Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow Trump’s latest travel ban to take effect, following an appeals court ruling last week that blocked part of it from being enacted. This latest travel ban removed Sudan from the original list and added the countries of Chad and North Korea and some government officials from Venezuela. The latest order also includes restrictions on citizens from Iraq, as well as all citizens of Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen and Somalia.

Nebraska Regulator Approves Keystone XL Pipeline

Nov 21, 2017

Nebraska regulators have approved the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, dealing a blow to the nearly decade-long battle to stop the project. On Monday, regulators rejected TransCanada’s preferred route but approved an alternative path for the pipeline, which would link up with an existing network to carry oil from Canada’s tar sands region in Alberta to refineries as far away as the Gulf of Mexico. Opponents say the Keystone XL pipeline threatens to pollute Nebraska’s Ogallala Aquifer while accelerating greenhouse gas emissions from oil extracted in Canada’s tar sands region. Monday’s approval comes only days after, in South Dakota, TransCanada was forced to shut part of its Keystone 1 pipeline after a massive rupture spilled 210,000 gallons of oil into a nearby field.

Trump Designates North Korea as State Sponsor of Terrorism

Nov 21, 2017

President Trump has officially designated North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism, escalating the rising tensions between the two countries. Other countries on the list are Sudan, Syria and Iran. The diplomatic move comes amid an escalating threat of nuclear war, with Trump repeatedly threatening to “totally destroy” North Korea and to unleash “fire and fury” on the nation of 25 million people. This is Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson: “I call it the peaceful pressure campaign. The president calls it the maximum pressure campaign. So there’s no confusion, they’re one and the same. And I think this is, though, to hold North Korea accountable for a number of actions that they’ve taken.”

Report: U.S. Air Force on Track to Triple Number of Bombs Dropped in Afghanistan

Nov 21, 2017

In news on the U.S. war in Afghanistan, the U.S. Air Force is on track to triple the number of bombs dropped there this year, compared with last year. The major increase in bombing comes as the Trump administration has deployed thousands more U.S. troops to Afghanistan in recent months. By early 2018, there are slated to be about 16,000 U.S. troops there. The ongoing U.S. war in Afghanistan is the longest war in U.S. history.

NYT: U.S. Military Sharply Increased Bombing in Somalia in November

Nov 21, 2017

Meanwhile, the U.S. military has also sharply increased bombing in Somalia in recent days. The New York Times reports the U.S. has carried out at least five drone strikes since November 9, killing at least 40 people, who the Pentagon claims are militants with al-Shabab.

Report: U.S. Wars Since 9/11 Will Cost Up to $8 Trillion in Interest Payments Alone

Nov 21, 2017

This comes as a new report from Brown University’s Costs of War Project estimates that the U.S. wars since the 9/11 attacks in 2001 will cost up to $8 trillion in interest payments alone over the coming decades. Their report says the U.S. has already spent $4.3 trillion on the wars—and that the U.S. will be paying trillions of dollars in interest on the war debt for decades to come.

Zimbabwe: Mugabe Still Refusing to Resign, as Ruling Party Opens Impeachment Proceedings

Nov 21, 2017

In Zimbabwe, longtime leader Robert Mugabe is continuing to refuse to resign, amid an escalating political standoff in the country. Zimbabwe’s ruling party is expected to begin impeachment proceedings today. Last week, Mugabe was placed under house arrest after Zimbabwe’s military seized Parliament, courts, government offices and the capital’s main airport in an apparent coup. Robert Mugabe has held power since Zimbabwe declared independence 37 years ago. On Monday, students went on strike, boycotting their exams and calling for Mugabe to step down.

Student: “Until Robert Mugabe resigns, we are not going to write an exam. No one is going to write an exam. This university is going to be declared closed, until Robert Mugabe comes to a point, comes to his senses. We students are saying, 'Robert Mugabe, it's over. We want a new president.’”

Back in the United States, the head of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, known as PREPA, has resigned, as half the island still has no electricity two months after Hurricane Maria. Ricardo Ramos had faced widespread outrage for signing a $300 million contract with the tiny Montana-based company Whitefish, named after the hometown of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke. Whitefish is now threatening to sue the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, claiming the power authority owes the company $83 million.

Justice Department Sues to Block AT&T-Time Warner Merger

Nov 21, 2017

The Justice Department has sued to block a proposed $85 billion merger between AT&T and Time Warner, setting the stage for one of the biggest anti-trust lawsuits in decades. The merger would give AT&T control over Warner Bros. film and television studios, along with CNN, TNT, HBO and many other brands. Many say the Justice Department lawsuit could be politically motivated, as it comes after President Trump has spent months threatening and disparaging CNN, which is owned by Time Warner.

FCC to Announce Plans to Repeal Net Neutrality Rules Today

Nov 21, 2017

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai is expected to announce today a sweeping plan to repeal all net neutrality rules. The rules were adopted in 2015 to keep the internet open and prevent corporate service providers from blocking access to websites, slowing down content or providing paid fast lanes for internet service. The new plan to scrap those rules is expected to be voted on during a December meeting of FCC commissioners.

Transgender Day of Remembrance: 25 Trans People Killed in U.S. So Far This Year

Nov 21, 2017

And people gathered in cities across the U.S. and the world on Monday for the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. At least 25 transgender people have been murdered so far this year in the U.S.—the majority of whom were black trans women. Across the world, more than 300 trans people have been reported murdered so far this year.

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